Shuttle with rubber tip



0a. 8, 1946. T G. TURNER 2,409,003

SHUTTLE WITH RUBBER TIP Filed Nov. 3, 1945 as h 5 25 e FIG-2 I FIG-5- INVENTOR R/GHARDG TURNER ATTORNEY Patented Get. 8, 1946 SHUTTLE WITH RUBBER TIP Richard G. Turner, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts Application November 3, 1945, Serial No. 626,461

Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in loom shuttles and it is the general object of the invention to provide a shuttle having a relatively soft tip for the purpose of reducing wear of the shuttle picker.

Shuttles are ordinarily constructed with hardened steel tips which enter a conical shaped hole in the picker. The picker may either be fastened directly to the picker stick, or may slide along a picker spindle, but in either case the metallic point causes considerable wear and distortion of the picker. This Wear occurs at the time of picking when the picker is forced against the shuttle tip, and also at the time of shuttle boxing when the tip strikes the picker as the shuttle is brought to rest in the shuttle box. It is an important object of my invention to reduce the aforesaid wear of the picker by providing the shuttle with a tip made of some material softer than the picker but possessed of suflicient wear resisting properties to resist undue wear of itself by the picker. The tip is so made that the surface of it which engages the shuttle picker will be somewhat resilient, and to achieve this result I prefer to make the tip of some such material as elastic vulcanized rubber.

Shuttle tips are ordinarily held to the shuttle by means of a stud inserted into the wooden body of the shuttle and fastened therein in any approved manner, as by a cross pin; It is another object of my present invention to provide the tip holding stud with a cavity or cup into which a part of the elastic tip extends. This cup is preferably in line with the force which is applied to the tip longitudinally of the shuttle by the picker at the time of picking and shuttle boxing, and a knob of rubber on the tip end extending intothe cup will be temporarily compressed and tend to expand into tight holding relation with respect to the stud. By this construction the holding relationship between the rubber part of the tip and its stud is increased at those times when the tip is subjected to picking or shuttle boxing forces.

With these and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, my invention resides in the combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and set forth.

In the accompanying drawing, wherein a convenient embodiment of my invention is set forth,

Fig. 1 is a plan View of part of a shuttle box showing a shuttle equipped with my improved shuttle tip together with a form of picker customarily used at the drop box end of fancy looms and at the replenishing end of certain types of looms,

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical section on line 22 of Fig. l, I

Fig. 3 is an enlarged front elevation of the stud or holder to which the rubber tip is secured, as by vulcanization,

Fig. 4 is an end elevation looking in the'direction of arrow 4, Fig. 3, and

Fig. 5 is an enlarged vertical section through the rubber tip with the stud removed taken on line 5-5, Fig. 2.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1, I have indicated a shuttle box I0 along which extends a picker spindle H on which is slidably mounted a picker 12. The latter has an elongated bearing H5 in sliding engagement withthe spindle and. has a. picker head M for engagement with the shuttle. Between the bearing and head there is located a slot I5 which receives the upper end of a picker stick IS. The head 14 will ordinarily be provided with a conical hole I! on that side thereof which engages the shuttle. During. loom .operation the picker stick is caused to move in the direction toward the center of the loom not shown, to the right as viewed in Fig. 1,.to slide the picker along the spindle and impart the picking force to the shuttle S. On its return flight the shuttle enters box [0 and comes to rest against the picker.

As already mentioned there are other types of pickers with which my invention can be used, but the form shown in Fig. 1 is thought sufiicient to illustrate the relationship between my invention and a particular type of picker, but it is to be understood that the use of my invention is not limited to this type of picker.

The shuttle S is provided with a body'20 havin a weft compartment 21 in which i located a weft Except for the tip the matter thus far described is of common construction and may operate in usual manner.

The .tip T is secured to a tip holder on stud 25 having a shank 26 peripherally grooved at 21 and driven into the wooden body 2|! of the shuttle and held in position by a cross pin 28. The stud is provided with a relatively thin integral flange 30 the inner surface 3| of which closely abuts the outer end wall 32 of the body 20. The stud is provided with a second flange 35 preferably of less diameter .than the flange and spaced from the latter sufliciently to define a space 36 into which moldable material can flow. The flange is preferably slabbed or flattened as at 31 so that it has a non-circular contour. Projecting outwardly from the flange 35 is a circular cup 40 integral with the stud 25 and preferably coaxial therewith and having a cavity 4| which may be of the form indicated in Fig. 3 wherein that part of the .cavity near the flange 35 is of larger diameter than the mouth 43 remote from the flange 35. The cup is preferably though not necessarily or -frustraconical form with an outer surface 44' whicheom verges toward the axis of stud 25. p w

The tip T is shown more particularly in Figs. 2 and 5, and is made of a moldable elastic'mate'rial, such as rubber, which can be vulcanized to the stud 25. As shown more particularly in Fig. 5 the resilient tip is provided with a flat surface 45 which closely engages the outer;suriace- 46 of flange 30. The tip has a recess 41 which fits closely around the flange 35, and the slabbed or flattened parts '31 of'flanges 35 preventrelative turning of the rubber tip member with respect to the stud member 25. The tip is also provided with parts of the stud to the left of the flange 30 as viewed in Fig. 3. The knob 49 will thus be formed withthat end thereof adjacent to the flange 30 of somewhat larger diameter than the neck 50 which flts the mouth 43.

The tip and'stud 25 are sov related that the axis of the tippasses through cavity 4| 'andknob 49 so that at the time of picking and shuttle boxing any force to which the tip is subjected because of its engagement with the picker will compress the knob and tend to expand it, thereby'establishing'a closer holding relationship be:- tween knob 49 and the interior of the cup 40.

Pickers are 'ordinarily made of somematerial softer than the steel of which the usual shuttle tips are made, this material beingeither rawhide or a textile impregnated with a binder. The tip member T shown herein will ordinarily be softer than the picker and will cause very little wear of the latter. It has been proposed heretofore to use elastic rubber in the mounting of shuttle tips, but so far asI am aware all such tips have had metallic parts to engage and wear the picker. In the present instance there is no picker engaging metal on the shuttle tip, and all parts and surfaces of the tip which engagethe picker are softer than the picker and will conform to the preformed hole l1. v 7 p From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a shuttle equipped with a tip the picker engaging part of which is non-metallic and made of some soft resilient material such as rubber which will conform to the hole I1 without causing appreciable wear of the picker. I do not wish to be limited to any particular degree of softnes's or resilience of the tip relatively to the picker so long as the properties of the tip are such that it causes little or no wearing of the picker. It will also be seen that the cup 40 is so located with respect to the direction in which picking forces are imparted to the shuttle that the knob 49 will be expanded to establish increasingly tight holding relationship with the interior of the cup whenever the tip member is subjected to a force directed longitudinally of the shuttle, either at the time of picking or boxing.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and I do not wish to be limited to the details herein d-isclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a shuttle for a loom operating with a shuttle propelling picker, a metallic stud on the shuttle having a cavity therein facing the picker, and a tip of'softelastic material held on' the stud andha'ving a part thereof extending into said cavity. v

2. In a shuttle for a loom operating with a shuttle propelling picker, a metallic stud on the shuttle extending longitudinally of the shuttle, a cup on the end of said stud facing away from the shuttle, and a picker engaging tip made of soft elastic material and having a part thereof extending into said cup, said tip being of conical form and so disposed that the axis thereof passes through said part of the tip in said cup.

3. In a shuttle subjected to a picking force directed'longitudinally of the shuttle, a metallic stud on the shuttle having a part thereof formed as a cup facing away from the shuttle and in line with said force, and a tip of soft elastic material held to said stud and having a part thereof entering said cup, said tip transmitting the picking force through said cup to the shuttle and said force expanding that part of the tip within the cup against the latter.

4. In a shuttle subjected to a picking force directed toward the shuttle along the axis thereof, a stud on the shuttle having a cup facing away from the shuttle, and 'a, conical tip of soft elastic material held tosaid stud and having a knob entering said cup, the axes of the stud, cup and tip lying along the axis of the shuttle and passing through said knob.

5. -In a shuttle subjectedto a picking forcedirected toward the shuttle'along the axis thereof, a stud on the shuttle having a cup thereon formed with a frustro-conical'cavity which converges in a direction away from the shuttle, and a tip of softelastic material supported by said stud and having a knob whichfillssaid cavity, said picking-force being transmitted throughsaid ip and placing'said knob under compression tendingto expand said knob against said cup. a V

RIGHARD G. TURNER. 

